Launch day came on a Tuesday morning, and I was sitting at home because of a snow day, but all thoughts were on the approaching shuttle launch. I sat in the den, on the floor, with my eyes glued to the television. The countdown began. The first teacher was going up in space. Christa McCauliff's students were even watching from the bleachers at the Kennedy Space Center.
73 seconds into the flight, tragedy struck. It looked like an explosion. Pieces of the shuttle broke apart. Smoke billowed out from all sides. Something was terribly wrong. The shuttle plummeted to the sea in pieces. America watched in horror. There would be no survivors.
Whenever I hear that it's the anniversary of the Challenger disaster, I'm immediately brought back to that day-- to the excitement that led up to that morning's launch, and to the shock of how the day played out.
It was the first big news event that I can remember, and the first time I felt like I had witnessed something that would forever be a part of history.
In case you've never heard of it, please take a few minutes to read up on the event, and then check out the videos below.
